Just 3 global insurers have policies to stop insurance for new oil/gas projects

Written by Adam Cadle

03/11/2021

Just three insurers have adopted policies to stop insurance for much or all new oil and gas production projects, despite warnings from the International Energy Agency and Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Insure Our Future has warned.

In its fifth annual scorecard published today on insurers’ climate policies, Insure Our Future revealed that France’s AXA, Italy’s Generali, and Australia’s Suncorp, are the only insurers to have cemented into place such policies.

While most insurers are stalling on oil and gas according to the scorecard, the industry’s exit from the coal sector continues at a rapid pace, with tangible results. Since 2017, 35 insurers have withdrawn cover from coal, up from 23 a year ago, including over 50% of the global reinsurance market.

Peter Bosshard, global coordinator of the Insure Our Future campaign, said: “The insurance industry is abandoning climate leadership by continuing to underwrite new oil and gas projects. The scientific consensus is clear: we cannot avoid a climate catastrophe if we expand fossil fuel production. Insurance companies need to follow the science and stop insuring all new coal, oil and gas projects if they want to regain their credibility as climate leaders.”

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